What He Left (Hannily)

7: Lost and Found

Emily POV

I'm scrolling through Hanna and I's text messages, reading the ones from when we first started hinting at our feelings for each other.
My eyes start watering as I reminisce in these sweet memories. I think about the life I wanted to have with Hanna, and how that isn't a possibility anymore.
All of a sudden, my phone displays the 'incoming call' screen and Spencer's name.
I quickly wipe my tears and sniff as I answer.
"Hey." I say with no emotion.
"Emily." She says frantically.
I jump to attention and my heart starts pounding.
"What? What's going-"
"It's Hanna. We found her on Eighth Street just wandering, aimlessly. She's extremely sick, bruised, pale, skinny, just horrible. We're on our way to the hospital right now, meet us in five." She says and hangs up.
I'm left shaking, and I feel my stomach double.
"Ashley!" I call urgently as I grab my bag and get my shoes on.
"What's wrong honey?" She barges into the room and sees me in a bustle.
"Grab your shoes, they found Hanna. She's at the hospital." I explain and she's out of the room before I finish my sentence.
I follow quickly and soon we're in the car on our way to the E.R., my heart racing to see Hanna. My mind is processing this sudden information and I envision what is about to come; seeing Hanna in the hospital, finding out where she's been, how this will affect her in the future.
"Hanna Marin?" I run to the check in desk and the woman behind it gives me the room number. I sprint down the hall and find 206.
I push the door open and Ashley follows up behind me quickly. She pushes past me lightly and runs over to where Hanna is.
Once I see her face, my heart stops beating. Everything around me ceases to exist. I'm staring at the love of my life, and the person I can't bear to be without. I wait no longer to feel her soft skin against mine, and I walk over to her bed.
"Emily!" She throws her frail arms around me and I jump on top of her.
"Ah!" She winces and I pull away quickly, looking deep into her pain-filled blue eyes.
"Hanna, what's wrong?" I ask quickly and she's holding her ribs.
I move her gown, revealing her ribcage and my breath catches in my throat.
"Oh my god." I whisper and Ashley gasps.
A large, purple and blue bruise is painted on her torso. Part of it is disfigured, some of her ribs clearly broken.
"Who..." I struggle to form words. I quickly recover and shake my head in disbelief "Who the fuck did that to you?!" I demand, more harsh than I intended.
"Em..." Spencer places a hand on my shoulder. I shoot her a look and she backs off.
"Hanna." I look back at her and repeat myself slowly. "Who. Did this. To you?"
Her eyes meet mine, and they're filled with tears. They fall down her cheeks quickly, and I wipe them away. Still waiting for her answer, the room is completely silent.
Her answer is short, and unexpected. It almost knocks me out.
"Ben." Her voice cracks, and everyone around us is stunned speechless.
"What?" Ashley stutters.
Everyone looks at each other in utter shock. My brow creases in confusion, and I let out a long breath. I place two fingers on the bridge of my nose and pinch, squeezing my eyes shut.
"That can't be right, he's... dead!" I say what everyone in the room is thinking.
"Honey, are you sure it was him?" Ashley moves a lock of hair behind Hanna's ear and she nods hard.
I try to come up with a reasonable answer to how this might have happened. I mean, she can't be lying. Why would she?
"Where?" I ask finally, after a moment of thought.
"Well..." She closes her eyes. This can't be easy for her to talk about. "I was walking down an alley, and he just grabbed me. I thought I was having some sort of twisted nightmare..." She swallows, "But it was real. Then he took me to this... shed? Look, I can't talk about this right now." She starts breathing heavily and shaking her hands nervously.
"Hey," I embrace her warmly and press her head against my heart. "You're safe now, there is no reason to be afraid." I whisper.
"Em, he's still out there! He could be out of Pennsylvania by now!" She sobs, not leaving my chest.
I desperately look at my friends and they take over, comforting Hanna while I talk to Spencer.
"So?" I press, needing answers.
"We seriously just found her limping on the side of the road. She was bruised badly, and super skinny." She shakes her head and I think for a moment.
"Where?" I ask again and she closes her eyes.
"If I remember correctly... It was on Williams Avenue. Where Williams meets Sixth." She says and my mind immediately recognizes those street names.
"That's the address that he used to live in. It's abandoned now, and I guess he just uses it for..." I shudder and shake my thoughts away.
I go back to my main priority and embrace her once again. She cries into my neck and I squeeze her as hard as I can.
"Em, my bruises." She whispers in pain and I roll my eyes.
"Oh my god, I can't even hold my fucking girlfriend because of him!" I pull away and start pacing, angrily. "I swear, if that fucker comes near you, or anyone else for that matter, ever again, I'll kill him!" I shout and run my hands through my hair repeatedly.
The doctor enters the room.
"Alright Ms. Marin. You certainly have a few broken ribs." He sits on the stool and slides over to Hanna's bed.
"Anything else?" She asks urgently.
"Well... you are severely malnourished. But instead of consuming high amounts of food at once, we will be providing small portions every hour." He states and starts changing Hanna's IV.
Ashley and the doctor start discussing all of the medical procedures needed to get Hanna back on her feet but my mind is still reeling with thoughts about Ben.
"So, you should be out of here and good to go in no time." The doctor concludes and pats Hanna on the knee. She shifts uncomfortably and I cringe.
He hands her two pills and a Dixie cup of water. She dry swallows then and sets the water next to her bed.
Carefully, she rolls on her side and sighs, tiredly.
Once the doctor leaves, the room is silent. Ashley nods her head at Aria, Spencer, and I and they head out of the room. I stay back a few seconds, and kiss Han on the head.
"I'm so sorry babe. I love you." I whisper and follow the girls out of the room.

"Okay, Em and I will search downtown." Spencer states.
"And Ali and I will search uptown." Aria adds.
"I'll stay here with Hanna so she doesn't wake up alone." Ashley says and dismisses us. We all spread out in search of the nasty fucker.
"Spencer we have to go back to where she said he took her. That's the last place he was." I say as we climb into her car.
"Okay, where is it again?" She asks, and we start driving.
"Williams and Sixth." I say and point in the general direction of our destination.
We drive for a little while, until I spot an all too familiar house.
"There!" I point to the run-down building and Spencer brakes.
"Let's go." We get out of the car and walk around the trashy property until we find a shed.
"Oh my god!" I jump back as a rat crawls over the top of my foot.
I look at Spencer with disgust and she urges me to open the double doors.
I grab the rusty handle and pull the doors open with a loud creak.
The sight almost knocks me out and I turn around quickly. My head starts feeling cloudy and Spencer's arms become my resting place.
"Em! Emily wake up!" Spencer looks from me, to Ben's corpse and back to me.
"We have to call the police." I say groggily, remembering what I just saw.
"Got it." She pulls out her phone and we walk slowly away from the source of the horrible stench. After a beat, Spencer speaks. "My name is Spencer Hastings, I'd like to report a dead body... Ben Coogan... Looks like... Stabbed?" She hesitates and inspects his wound from afar. "Williams and Sixth. The shed behind the house... Thank you." She hangs up and looks at me.
"Em, your so pale." She grabs my head and hugs me. I fail to keep the tears back and I cry into her shoulder.
We sit at the scene for approximately three minutes before nearing sirens make my emotions halt and I soon hear voices.
"Hello? Ms. Hastings?" A couple police officers jog around the corner and I point into the shed. They turn and one of them speaks into his radio.
The other walks over and starts asking Spencer questions. I just stare at the group of men covering up Ben's body. They lift it onto a gurney and carry him out of sight.
"Are you two alright?" The officer asks us. I nod, not taking my eyes off of the pool of blood still staining the concrete.
"She just needs to see her girlfriend." Spencer sighs and rubs my back. The corners of my mouth prick up slightly at the word girlfriend.
"How did you know Mr. Coogan?" He asks Spencer, pulling out a small notepad and a pen.
I see civilians come out of their homes and just watch all the police cars that are arriving.
I watch the ambulance drive away, and all I can think of is Hanna. I need to see her.
"And Mr. Coogan was your boyfriend?" The officer now points his questions at me. I just nod and he jots something down.
He asks a few more questions that I didn't feel like talking about and then finally let's us go.
"If you have any more details that you think can help us with this, let us know." He tips his hat to us and Spencer says goodbye.
We walk to the car, Spencer's arm around for support, and we drive back to the hospital.
I speak to no one as I walk into the room and sit next to Hanna's bed.
Spencer follows me in and quietly explains to everyone what went on while we were gone.
Hanna's beautiful face is sleeping and slightly pale, like porcelain. Her small, veiny arms are resting on either side of her body and she is softly snoring in the cutest way.
I grab one of her upturned hands and kiss the top of it gently, not wanting to wake her.
I think to myself where else I might want to be and I draw a blank. I realize just then, sitting in the ER, the monotonous beep of the heart monitor in the background, looking at the most beautiful, yet pain ridden girl I've ever met, that I wouldn't rather be anywhere in the world than right here.